The pandemic put a spotlight on the massive public need for trustworthy digital inclusion services and drew much needed attention to digital inequities.
The City’s Digital Inclusion Fund (DI Fund) pilot funding year is focused on building capacity in community-based organizations that are already experimenting with providing Digital Navigator services to residents or looking to start training existing or new staff to be navigators.
About the Digital Inclusion Fund
The Digital Inclusion Fund was created by the Digital Equity Strategic Initiatives team with the support of City Council to pursue efforts to bridge the digital divide in the community with 30% of the resources intended to support small businesses and 70% of the resources intended to support the needs of individuals and the community at large. Through the initiative the City is also supporting the collection of data related to effective local solutions and identifying persistent or new digital equity barriers.
In designing the funding opportunities, city staff received the following guidance from community leaders:
- [We need] a [digital navigator] train the trainer program.”
- "We need to know who [digital navigator] to turn to when a training video doesn’t help.”
- “We need language-specific [digital literacy] training.”
- [Community] needs training, how to use software, understand what Google Docs are. [A community member] called the health clinic because they were a trusted source [in order to learn] how to use email and google software.
- […] Language-appropriate trainings, culturally-appropriate trainings and interactive [as opposed to video] trainings are needed. We also need trainings for small businesses (nonprofits as well).
- [We need] community in-person training; we need small-sized culturally-specific training that targets low-literacy languages areas; we need [digital literacy] training [that are] catered to smaller groups.
- One-to-one training is needed—[there are community members] that speak a language other than English or are persons with disabilities and [their] comfort with using technology is limited, so one-to-one interaction is needed.
Community Digital Navigator Pilot Grant Program
Overview
The City’s Digital Inclusion Fund: Community Digital Navigator Pilot Program is designed to help build capacity in community-based organizations that are already experimenting with providing Digital Navigator services to residents or looking to start training existing or new staff to be navigators.
The Digital Navigator model addresses multiple layers of becoming digitally included, which traditional classes and other services in the past might not have addressed completely.
The goal of the digital navigator is not only to provide accurate information about equipment, connectivity, or foundational education options but to offer support that addresses the particular needs and goals of the person receiving the service.
This is done by providing on-demand, one-to-one and small group dedicated support via phone, email, text, video chat, in-person, and/or other communication methods.
Digital Navigators support individuals with obtaining low-cost or free devices, signing up for free or affordable broadband service, and completing online tasks (i.e., filling out an online form, using Zoom, etc.). Digital Navigators do not provide high-level technical troubleshooting or repair broken devices directly (but can provide referrals for these tasks).
Digital Navigators
“Digital Navigators” are individuals who address the whole digital inclusion process—home connectivity, devices, and digital skills—with community members through repeated interactions.
The Digital Navigators can be volunteers or staff at a community-based organization who help individuals find an affordable, reliable internet connection, learn to use digital devices, apply for jobs, access government benefits for food, rent, childcare, using Zoom, email, and social media, and more. They work with each individual to provide on-demand, customized support.
Digital Navigators need to be familiar with technology, be willing to learn new tools, have up-to-date information about connectivity and equipment, be familiar with resources available in the community and need to be culturally competent.
Digital Navigators conduct outreach efforts in the community to identify individuals needing support and/or set up a telephone line for community members to call to get connected with a Digital Navigator. The Digital Navigator then takes the time to learn about the individual’s personal connectivity needs and goals and interacts with the individual repeatedly to build trust and provide a foundation for continued learning.
The Digital Navigator role is an excellent opportunity for those looking to gain professional skills in community development and digital inclusion skills training.
Program Goals
The City of Portland, through the Office for Community Technology (OCT), is launching a funding initiative in response to community identified solutions to addressing digital adoption barriers experienced by community members disproportionately impacted by the digital divide and the COVID pandemic: Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC), individuals with disabilities, seniors, and other community members in isolation and at high risk of exclusion.
The Community Digital Navigator Pilot Program is designed to build or scale Digital Navigator services in the community to help individuals find and apply for affordable connectivity, obtain low-cost or free computing devices, complete online tasks, and connect to digital skills training and technical support.
There are three goals for this pilot:
Goal 1: To ensure people, including Black, Indigenous, People of Color, People with disabilities, and Seniors, receive on-demand support and relevant information to secure internet access and devices, as well as the opportunity to build foundational digital skills that improve a person’s economic, health, and social wellbeing. All from a trusted, local source.
Goal 2: To ensure trusted community-based organizations are building capacity—by sustaining existing services or innovating new services—to serve the digital adoption needs of people disproportionately affected by the digital divide.
Goal 3: To learn from the Digital Navigators about persistent digital adoption barriers and to document the types of services and supports people affected by the digital divide need that could potentially be supported by the Digital Inclusion Fund.
Grant Eligibility Requirements
To be considered, applicant organizations and the proposed project must fulfill all the following minimum requirements:
- Applicant Organization must be a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, or have a registered fiscal agent, located in the City of Portland, OR.
- Applicant Organization must build or scale a Digital Navigator program that provides on-demand, one-to-one and/or small group dedicated support to people experiencing barriers to digital adoption via phone, email, text, video chat, in-person, and/or other communication methods.
- Applicant Organization agrees to commit time (approx. 10-20 hours) to negotiate a grant agreement with City OCT staff.
- Applicant Organization agrees to commit some of the digital navigator(s) time (approx. 1 hour/month) during the proposed project period to share learnings.
- Application is signed by a duly authorized representative of the applicant organization.
Evaluation Criteria
This grant program is competitive. Applications that meet baseline eligibility requirements, will move forward in the process to be reviewed by a small selection committee using an evaluation matrix that includes the following criteria: organizational size, community reach, organizational plan for the Digital Navigator project, understanding of community needs, intent to serve diverse populations, and geographic distribution of service area.
Community Digital Navigators Grant Application
The Pilot Program application window has closed.
Small Business Digital Navigator Pilot Grant Program
Overview
The City of Portland, through the Office for Community Technology (OCT), is launching a funding initiative in response to community identified solutions to addressing digital adoption barriers for small businesses and BIPOC entrepreneurs.
The Small Business Digital Navigator Pilot Program is designed to support a Digital Navigator position to help small businesses and BIPOC entrepreneurs assess their internet connectivity needs and to subscribe to affordable internet service, assess options for online applications, services, and tools to help run, market, and conduct business, and to find affordable technical support.
The Small Business Digital Navigator will also be tasked with developing a granting process to award Digital Toolbox Micro Grants (up to $5,000 each, not to exceed a total grant award of $20,000) as needed to small businesses or BIPOC entrepreneurs that receive digital navigation services.
Small Business Digital Navigators
“Digital Navigators” are individuals who address the whole digital inclusion process—internet connectivity, devices, and digital skills—with community members through repeated interactions.
The Small Business Digital Navigator is a staff person at a community-based organization who helps small business leaders find an affordable, reliable internet connection, learn to use digital devices, access financial resources, use business applications and software, and more. They work with an individual or team at the small business to provide on-demand, customized support.
Digital Navigators need to be familiar with business-related technology, be willing to learn new tools, have up-to-date information about connectivity and equipment, be familiar with resources available to small businesses and need to be culturally competent.
Digital Navigators conduct outreach efforts in the community to identify small businesses and BIPOC entrepreneurs needing support. The Digital Navigator then takes the time to learn about their connectivity needs and goals and interacts with them repeatedly to provide a foundation for continued learning.
Program Goals
The goal of the Pilot is four-fold:
Goal 1: To ensure small businesses and BIPOC entrepreneurs can confidently navigate the abundance of options of digital services, tools, and applications and can use the digital platform to be successful and competitive in the digital economy.
Goal 2: To ensure small businesses and BIPOC entrepreneurs have the digital tools (hardware and software) needed to develop their business.
Goal 3: To build capacity in the community to serve the digital adoption needs of small businesses and BIPOC entrepreneurs.
Goal 4: To learn from the Digital Navigator about persistent digital adoption barriers and to document the types of services and supports small businesses and BIPOC entrepreneurs need that could potentially be supported by the Digital Inclusion Fund.
Grant Eligibility Requirements
To be considered, applicant organizations and the proposed project must fulfill all of the following minimum requirements:
- Applicant must be non-profit organization, or have a registered fiscal agent, located in the City of Portland, OR.
- Applicant must build or scale a Digital Navigator program that provides on-demand, one-to-one and/or small group dedicated support to small businesses and BIPOC entrepreneurs experiencing barriers to digital adoption via phone, email, text, video chat, in-person, and/or other communication methods.
- Applicant organization agrees to commit time (approx. 10-20 hours) to negotiate a grant agreement with City OCT staff.
- Applicant organization agrees to commit some of the digital navigator’s time (approx. 1 hour/month) during the proposed project period for stakeholder engagement by presenting to Prosper Portland's Inclusive Business Resource Network Community of Practice and/or BIPOC in Tech Group, or City Bureau Partners.
- Application is signed by a duly authorized representative of the applicant organization.
Evaluation Criteria
This grant program is competitive. Applications that meet baseline eligibility requirements, will move forward in the process to be reviewed by a small selection committee using an evaluation matrix that includes the following criteria: community reach and intent to serve diverse populations, a well-presented plan for building the Small Business Digital Navigator project, demonstrated understanding of small business digital training/support needs, and demonstrated experience or plan to award micro-grants.
Small Business Digital Navigators Grant Application
The Pilot Program application window has closed.
Grant Selection Committee
The Office for Community Technology is engaging in Participatory Grantmaking, which is an approach to funding decisions and strategies that emphasizes a human-centered approach and aims to shift traditional power dynamics in grant-making decisions to communities and those most affected by a social issue.
Community Digital Navigator Grant Selection Committee
Opportunity to participate has closed.
Small Business Digital Navigator Grant Selection Committee
Opportunity to participate has closed.